Air Masquerade

After a tumultuous offseason that saw the departure of a coach that collected 10-win seasons like loose change and the unexpected early departure of a quarterback on the verge of shattering every passing record in the books, Ohio State entered the season intent on shocking the world.

It's probably safe to say that the craptacular passing performance put forth in a 24-6 loss to Miami Saturday night was not what they had in mind.

Just a week after surrendering 348 yards through the air to Maryland -- Maryland -- Miami watched OSU quarterbacks Joe Bauserman and Braxton Miller go a combined 4/18 for 35 yards as the Buckeyes were held out of the endzone for the first time since a 13-6 loss to Penn State in the suddenly halcyon days of 2008.

The 35 yards through the air matched the lowest production of the Tressel era, ironically coming against another team from Florida, and only compounded matters as Ohio State was playing catch-up all night after Miami quarterback Jacory Harris hit wide receiver Allen Hurns for touchdowns on the Hurricanes' first two drives of the evening.

With Tressel and Pryor gone and three other key contributors suspended for the first five games of this season, we expected a bumpy ride this year, but I'm not sure any of us could have anticipated anything like this.

When Ohio State was stomped by Mark Sanchez and USC in 2008, we could take comfort in knowing that a) the Trojans were absolutely loaded and b) the Terrelle Pryor era -- with all of its hype and expectations -- was upon us.

Today, we're swallowing a defeat from a not particularly great Miami team that did little else beyond their two opening drives, aside from Lamar Miller's superb night (26 for 185) and the quarterback situation is perhaps no closer to resolution than it was at the end of fall camp.

So how did we get here?

After winning the toss, the Hurricanes deferred and Ohio State, led by Bauserman, promptly went three-and-out. On Miami's first play from scrimmage, Miller went 54 yards over the right side with a Bradley Roby pursuit angle preventing a touchdown. It didn't matter. Miami would score three plays later on a three yard pass from Harris to Hurns.

The Buckeyes followed-up with another three-and-out and the Hurricanes took the ball and marched 53 yards on 11 plays, capped by another Harris to Hurns touchdown, again covering three yards, to put Miami ahead 14-0.

Enter Jordan Hall. The junior running back seeing his first action of the season after sitting out the first two games for accepting improper benefits, ripped off back-to-back runs of 13 yards to move Ohio State into Miami territory, before Miller was intercepted on a tipped ball to kill the drive.

No worries -- yet, at least -- as Harris quickly turned the ball back over to the Buckeyes four plays later when safety C.J. Barnett stepped in front of a post pattern. Taking over at their own 35, the Buckeyes again turned to Hall and he responded with 27 yards on two carries, advancing the ball to Miami's 43, but the drive stalled after Miller took a sack (the first surrendered by OSU this season).

The defense, settling in, forced a Miami three-and-out and road the running of Hall and Carlos Hyde to the Miami five before settling for a Drew Basil field goal, cutting the Hurricanes' lead to 14-3.

On the ensuing possession, Harris was again picked off, this time by cornerback Bradley Roby, putting the Buckeyes in business at the Miami 23 with a little under six minutes remaining in the first half. After a roughing the passer call against the Hurricanes, OSU received a fresh set of downs at Miami's 11 yard line. Two runs for four yards and a Bauserman incompletion quickly led to another Basil field goal and although it wasn't the touchdown we all wanted, Fickell's crew had momentum.

Passing

Cmp/Att

Pct

Yds

TD

Int

Rat

Miller

2/4

50.0

22

0

1

48.3

Bauserman

2/14

15.4

13

0

0

23.8

Rushing

Att

Yds

Avg

Lng

TD

Fum

Hall

14

87

6.2

15

0

0

Hyde

12

54

4.5

17

0

0

Miller

7

23

3.3

13

0

1

Berry

1

4

4.0

4

0

0

Bauserman

3

-3

-1

4

0

0

Receiving

Rec

Yds

Avg

Lng

TD

Fum

Hyde

1

13

13.0

13

0

0

Smith

1

10

10.0

10

0

0

Berry

1

9

9.0

9

0

0

Hall

1

4

4.0

4

0

0

Said momentum quickly evaporated after Harris and the Canes marched 64 yards in the final 3:40 of the first half to kick a field goal and stretch their lead to go back up by two scores, 17-6 at the half.

Despite Miller's earlier interception, Bauserman was just 1/9 for 4 yards and Todd Blackledge, Brad Nessler and everyone in America watching the game figured the freshman would get the second half start. Nope.

After forcing yet another Hurricane three-and-out to start the half (and witnessing a missed cut from Hall taking the ensuing punt to the house), Not Broadway Joe trotted out and handed the ball to Hyde three times, resulting in a first down. He quickly followed that up with a scramble for no yards, a duck over the middle and a seven yard sack, forcing Ohio State to punt.

Surely, it was finally Braxton's time to shine, right? Not quite.

After the defense forced a turnover on downs at their own 41 thanks to a Harris fumble on a botched keeper, Miller did enter the game at quarterback, but promptly fumbled the ball back to himself, earning a quick yank from offensive coordinator Jim Bollman.

The Hurricanes would punt the ball back and Bauserman returned to throw two more errant Bauserbombs leading to another punt, which Miami answered with a punt of their own at the top of the 4th quarter.

So, Buckeye ball, 12:32 to go in the game, down by 11 and Miller comes on once again. Starting at their own 26, the Buckeyes road the legs of Miller on five of six plays, advancing to the Miami 46, before the freshman was hit from behind on a big run and Miami recovered.

A drive that started so promising ended with youth being youth and that was pretty much that.

Miami embarked on 14-play drive that ate nearly nine minutes off of the clock before Mike James punched it in from the one, putting the final points on the board for the evening.

Miller did come out for Ohio State's final series and managed to more than double OSU's passing yardage on the game's final two plays, hitting Rod Smith for 10 and Hyde for 12 before the clock expired, but the sucker punch to the gut had been delivered.

As frustrating as tonight was, I think it's important to keep things in perspective. We knew this team wasn't going to win every game out and they slipped up in their new coach's first road game. It's fair, however, to ask questions, like what happened to the rushing attack in the second half (Hall had cramps, but just four carries for Hyde?), why Miller was yanked mid-series (thanks for the confidence shot, Mr. Bollman!) and how Bauserman can be so woefully unprepared to lead this team.

I really don't know how you can say that the QB solution is no closer than it was at the end of camp. Who in their right mind really thinks Bauserman should be the guy?

The argument for him was always that he may give us a better chance to win now than a green, true freshman. But at this point, it's been made very plain that we will not be winning anything with Bauserman behind center.

I'm extremely excited to kick off the "Braxton Miller Era" next saturday.

Jason, good stuff. It is a little shocking, and quite disturbing that a school and football program like Ohio State could trot a guy out like Bauserman at quarterback tonight and see those results. It sort of makes me dig deeper than the simple answer of..."well obviously Bauserman sucks."

Says a lot when Bauserman takes most of the meaningful snaps through spring and fall, then enters his first road test and the man literally cannot complete more than 2 forward passes (that weren't even to receivers or tight ends). Bauserman has been at OSU for a few seasons now. This isn't his first rodeo. I get that he hasn't taken meaningful reps basically until this year because of Pryor having that nailed down, but what the hell has the guy been doing since he got to Ohio State? Watching him tonight was so cringe-worthy that it truly just looked like a guy who mentally and physically could not perform under the circumstances.

This wasn't like USC from 2008, as you said....where Boeckman was harassed all night by pressure from a super talented defense. No, this is an average to below average Miami team with a solid defense, and that's it. Why Bauserman, who had to have made many plays against his own teammates in practice earlier this year, couldn't compete against that team baffles me.

I can only come up with one word for the game last night--embarrassing. At times I had to flip to Shawshank Redemption on TNT just to watch something I knew, albeit things looked pretty bad for Andy and Red, would have a good ending. Most major programs have a fairly decent backup quarterback in the event the starter gets hurt--TOSU doesn't even have a starter that matches most major programs' back-up-- How in the hell did we get in this position? I'm sure some would say it's Pryor fault or the Pryor/Sweater Vest situation--but come on, 4 passes for 35 yards against a mediocre Miami defense? TOSU should have a backup that could step in and beat all but maybe top 20 teams' defenses with help from the running backs and defense. I know TOSU has never been known for its ability to push out exceptional QB's but most have been at least functional as a leader and occasionally able to come up with a "holy cow" play.

It use to piss me off (and still does) to no end hearing my SEC friends talk about slow Big 10 defenses are and I shrugged it off as hyperbole--but last night, if they didn't look like the Keystone Cops on the first big Miami run up the middle, they looked like maybe they should be holdin' up protractors to help them calculate attack angles and maybe invest in a set of bolt cutters to relieve themselves of the anvils apparently attached to their ankles.

I love my Buckeyes--but just like sometimes you finally acknowledge that your friends are right and your girlfriend IS a bitch maybe for the first time this year I have my eyes wide open and will admit-- this could be one ugly ride this year!! Stock up on the paper bags and keep two handy-- you're going to need them.

A little review of the tape and things don't look quite so bad for the QB's IMHO the morning after.

The QB situation is going to be an issue all season, but the receivers were a bigger story in the Miami game.

Look at who was on the field in the first couple of series at receiver. Fields, Stoneburner and Fragel lined up at receiver, Verlon Reed and Evan Spencer. First series Bauserman misses Fields on a swing route, but I wouldn't say Fields made a great effort on the play. Second series Spencer drops a pass that puts the Bucks "behind the chains".

If Fields and Spencer make those plays it very likely is a different game. Those first 2 series are not 3-and-outs and who the heck knows what happens.

Verlon Reed had a few drops in the game as well.

I am FAR from claiming that Bauserman is a great QB, but he is taking a beating for something that he cannot control No Philly Brown. No Posey. No Mike Adams. No Boom Herron. Let's not act like those things don't matter.

He is getting little to no help from his receivers, and that is about what you would expect from a couple of true freshman, a converted QB playing WR and a TE attempting to play as a slot receiver. I love Stoney, but he is a TE and not a slot receiver.

I think the defense did its best. It was simply on the field too often.

The offense carried out two scoring drives. It owned the middle of the line. Jordan Hall played the way we hoped - perhaps better. So, there's reason for some optimism. He was undermined by a lack of game-type conditioning, that's all.

We had the talent to beat Miami.

But, you've got to know how to coach your talent, to win.

So, did the defensive-minded, rookie head coach - mismanage - by not ceding more control of the offense to Jim Bollman?

Or did Jim Bollman, prove why Jim Tressel called the plays?

Bottom line: the offense was unprepared to win on the road. The head coach lost the game.

Does Fickell and Bowser have some sort of secret bond going on between them? No homo.

True, we're missing some of our stud players now, but if you're a stud player yourself, which the Bowser is not, you make other less talented players better. Miller may not be a stud yet, but at least his athleticism can cover up some of his inadequacies for now. On the other hand the Bowser has nothing going for him. Nothing. So it shouldn't be hard to decide who should be the starting QB from here on out. Fickell, you're the head coach at THE Ohio State University! C'mon, do your job right! Ha! Piss-fuckin-poor... man, it's gonna be a long week leading up to next Saturday...

A lot chickens came home to roost last night. Start with April and add up the adversity. Our expectations about this team are like looking at a pile of horse manure and expecting there to be a pony inside.

Jim "DooDah" Day

Great. I think I got it. But just in case... tell me the whole thing again, I wasn't listening.

I can't help but think that if it was Brax from the start he gets most of those mistakes out of the way week 1 and 2. He might have made a few mistakes again last night, but at least he threw the ball like he meant it to go somewhere other than the stands.

Tried to watch NFL Gameday and had to quickly turn the TV off when Eisen (Mich scum), cocaine/underage prostitute lovin' Irvin, and that fat guy who once physically threatened the really old Packers coach were all gloating on the game from last night. Must avoid all news today.

My biggest source of aggravation right now is the QB situation and rightfully so. This isn't Stanley Jackson/Joe Germaine & Walt Harris isn't the QB coach.

With all the inexperience there wasn't much of a chance to run the table on the season & Bauserman is here for only this year, not the future like Braxton. There is absolutely no reason to continue to give Bauserman the majority playing time. We have all heard that Miller is still getting a firm grasp on the playbook & I would suspect that some of his lack of playing time goes towards that. With that being said, Miller is the future. He sparks the Offense & provides mobility, especially when we have some issues at receiver. This isn't a knee-jerk reaction to last night. I held this view pre-akron & on. Bauserman WAS a pretty solid recruiting grab years ago. He just isn't the answer.

O-line. Sigh. Probably the best protection/push I've seen from you in a long time. Unfortunately, it came at a time when throwing the ball was bad on both sides (receivers & QB). I feel your pain.

Hall showed me why ppl kept talking about him through practices. Absolutely solid back. I truly believe Miller & Hall, in conjunction with this O-line can be incredible.

Defense. Took you a bit longer to adjust but you did. There were some areas of concern in coverage but overall you kept us in the game.

---

Can't stand losing to a team we shouldn't. This easily falls into that category. We shot ourselves repeatedly & were still in it until the 4th. There of positives to take from this although there are just as many negatives. The QB situation has to be addressed.

I was at that abhorration of a game last night. I ended up leaving after the Miller fumble in the 4th quarter in order to avoid the terrible Miami fans and traffic log jam. I'm not one to normally leave a game early, but I was tired of the defense making plays and watching the qb crap his pants. I must say it took everything in my being not to boo Bauserman. He wasn't solely responsible for the turd of a game, but watching his complete ineptitude behind center was disgusting. He focused on 1 wr the entire night and if he wasn't open he threw it away. There was a 70 year old woman next to me who was screaming, "Why in the hell is he still in the game?" I really don't know the purpose of keeping him in the game, but when granny's mad you know it's time for a change. This reminded me a lot of the 2008 USC game except the fact that Miami isn't that great of a team which is cause for great concern. Unless something miraculous happens I have a hard time seeing this team becoming bowl eligible, but then again 2008 didn't turn out all that bad. Imma do my best to keep hope alive.

This is the first time in years, and I mean like 10+ years, that I didn't lose sleep after an Ohio State loss. It's actually a bit refreshing because I usually take this shit way too seriously. I'm hoping the team isn't taking the loss as lightly as I am, but I think my expectations have tempered quite a bit. Every team has to rebuild so I will be patient this year. However, I'm concerned that we're in for a lean couple of years.

I have to admit to being the same way about the loss. I didn't throw anything during the game either. I think the all the off season turmoil added to what was on display against Toledo padded my emotions for this game. I still had hope, but only in our defense or special teams.

It's wierd, but I have taken this loss pretty good as well. I don't know why, perhaps because my expectations were tempered for this year. I did think this team would win between 8-10 games, (I know, that is tempered expectatations?). I still think this team can win 8 games, but double digits appears out of reach. When you can't complete a freaking pass to a WR, you are not beating several teams penciled in on the upcoming schedule. Hell, colorado looks interesting at this point.

Oh well, we will have to reload and get better.

Like most, I see no real reason to play Bauserman. Really, he doesn't give the team a better chance to win. Miller will make more mistakes for sure, but he might make more plays as well. We are probably not playing for a BCS spot this year, so let's get the kid some reps with the WR's he'll need over the next three years, right? it's not just gameday, but all the reps with the 1's during the week that will help as well.

I'm there with you. I couldn't be that upset about it. Like last week, almost the entire team and coaching staff struggled in all facets of the game, except for perhaps the OL, so it's pointless to point fingers. The only thing that will annoy me is if the team starts feeling sorry for itself, etc.

Right now, the NCAA, eSECpn, and the haters are getting their pounds of flesh. But the Buckeyes now have nothing to lose. If they overcome their adversity sooner rather than later, it will make them more dangerous during the BT season. If it's going to take more time, well, might as well begin the reality check ASAP.

The team has a long way to go, but they showed flashes of potential even during last night's woeful performance:

The running game with Miller, Hall, Boom and gang has the talent to become very potent this year, if everyone stays healthy and the team improves every week.

Likewise, the pass defense can be stiffling this year, again if the defense progresses and stays healthy.

The special teams are getting better.

Also, Bauserman was given a legit shot to lead the offense. Now, if the coaches insert Miller as the starter, and the offense struggles at times, the receivers, etc. might be less likely to question things.

As far as the receivers go, yes they had a couple drops, but it's got to be mentally tough to run route after route and have passes sailing 10 feet over your head. Give Braxton 85% of the reps in practice so he and the receivers can start to form some chemistry. There is no chemistry when Bauserman is throwing his baseball junk.

Point 3 (above): Ohio State played its worst defense last night on the first two series of the games, when it was fresh. Run defense was bad much of the night, but especially on the first carry of the night.

Point 6: it's much too early to conclude that Luke "isn't ready for this." We might suspect that he's not ready, but can we give him more than three games before throwing him under the bus?

Point 8: this is just silly, sorry. In Cooper's first year, the team had much less talent than this team - just downright awful. The 1999 team was not just bad, but didn't seem to care. The Buckeyes went 4-5 in 1966.

This year's team will definitely make a bowl game if they're allowed to play in it.

Good morning Mr. Fickell. Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to pick one QB and give him 100% of the reps with the first team in practice. The IMF hopes that you wisely choose Mr. Miller. If you fail, the Buckeye fanbase will disavow any knowledge of your existence.

After sleeping off my drunken anger, I went back and watched some of the game's more important series. While the receivers didn't help out the QBs with some drops, there were some painfully obvious things that stood out.

Bauserman is simply not that accurate...and I think I'm being nice by leaving that. Throw out of bounds....throw into the stands....throws behind receivers (Go back and look at the pass to Stoneburner in the endzone.) With Braxton in the game, while he has this penchant to hold the ball like a loaf of bread, the offense was moving with him in the game. I don't care how the yards are gained (Wildcat, Read Option, QB Draw), all that matters is that the ball keeps moving towards the endzone and the chains keep moving.

The defense, after giving up the two quick ones, clamped their asses down and showed that they can still play as a unit. Just unfortunate they were on the field so damn much because of offensive ineptitude.

Fickell not burning timeouts at the end really baffles me, and I'm sure that he will be asked about it, or already has been, by reporters, staff members, and Buckeye Nation. The look on his face was one of shellshock, if you ask me. Perhaps he just wanted it to be over and done with. If he gave up, though, he needs to go sooner rather than later. Either way, I think this entire staff gets blown up after the season. Nebraska, Michigan State, Wisconsin....all those are losses right now if you ask me. Hell, I don't know if we can even beat Penn State or scUM. Hopefully there is an identity on offense by then, and by identity I mean the staff comes to the realization that Joe Bauserman is not the man for the job and that we should deal with the growing pains of Braxton Miller, just like we did in 2008, though Todd Boeckman was infinitely better than Joe Bauserman.

Like several people in the thread, I took the loss surprisingly well, which means that, in my head, I didn't expect us to win this game. Our running game and offensive line surprised me. Several times I watched our O-Line get to the second level and actually saw a running back use cutback lanes, which made me sit up and give me a nervous twinge.

In short, here's what I think....Braxton needs to cut his teeth full time, Fickell is not ready for the job, the defense is still good, Jordan Hall is our best runner, and Bollman is....

Is it weird that I leave this game a little more encouraged than perhaps I should be? Here's why:

1) After getting off to a rough start, I thought the defense did a marvelous job, specifically in the damage control department. They consistently provided the offense with good field position and an opportunity to get back into things. They progressively got more disciplined, made better tackles, got into better position. I like the resiliency. There's some damn good players on that side of the ball, and you have to admire the way they held it down given the absurd amount of three-and-outs the offense had.

2) Given the strking inefficiency of the passing game, I was AMAZED that we were able to run the ball with such success. Jordan Hall is a man, and Carlos Hyde is already making great progress. O-line showed up as far as run blocking was concerned, that's for sure, and the 35 passing yards just makes this more impressive.

3) Our punting game is nasty, easily provides a huge advantage.

4) Obviously, quarterback is the glaring issue. Maybe Braxton isn't ready, maybe his head is getting big and the coaches are trying to teach him a lesson, I don't know. But what I do know is that I've seen enough of the Baus. He's not going to get any better. I said earlier in the week that I was TERRIFIED of him throwing into this Miami defense, and it's clear that my worries were justified. He's just not a big-time talent. Braxton, even with the mistakes he will make and the learning he will go through, gives this team a much, much better chance to be successful. Get him in there and get him experience, because this team is going nowhere fast with the Baus under center. With Braxton under center, we might lose three, maybe four more games, but at least this time will be making progress. Bauserman does nothing to help this team now or in the future.

I agree, if anything it showed we improved immensely in the special teams and running department which were also huge concerns. Quarterbacking is the only issue, though a big one. If we just let Miller play and get experience we can only improve...because anyone is better than Joe Bauserman and Miller is our best alternative.

Oh, it's nasty alright. The Bucks entered the game ranked 109 of 120 teams in Net Punting. Not only is B.'s leg suspect, but the return coverage has been terrible. Be assured, this will cost us close games.

By the way, the Dispatch had him as one of the unsung heros of the game:

"Ohio State punter Ben Buchanan, who averaged 46.3 yards on six punts, including a beautiful 60-yarder to the Miami 4 midway through the third quarter, seconds after his 52-yarder to the 7 was nullified by penalty."

Well...this is a little (just a little) like sitting in the stands in 2007 watching OSU and Fla. and wondering where did my team go? And the Fla. fans sitting beside us laugh at us.. it hurts. I really really dis-like losing to the southern schools be it SEC or the ACC, I don't want to hear the crap on espn and the blogs ..but last night it looked like we deserve it.

I think our defense is tough, but damn, be ready to kick ass on the 1st play, not after you have given up 14 points. The defense is going to have to play like the devil on crack, from the 1st snap. Other teams defenses start the game with high intensity and a chip on their shoulder. We better be pissed, mean, and attacking on defense like every play is the most important play of the game.

It's just that this year defense is going to have to keep us in every game because the offense has ......sucked.

The offense did not offend Miami much. I liked the running game and folks are right it seems. A running game has to be supported by some level of passing ...Last nights passing was the worst I've seen in a long time, Fick is going to get all kinds of heat about that, they will be looking for the answer.

Here is mine;...(everybody is right) start Miller, run the ball straight ahead with power alternating Hall and Hyde to keep their legs fresh. Get miller practiced up to roll out after a play action option, off the roll out he completes some shorter passes or runs. If he ever runs with the ball real loose in traffic, like before last nights fumble, then electrodes should be attached to his privates and a sort jolt applied, if that ball is being carried, as someone said, like a loaf of bread. Seriously, that just has to stop now!!, I'd show him the electrodes to make my point. In traffic with hungry killer ball striping monsters close at hand.. he will from this day forward have two hands on the ball and learn it now.. if he learns one thing this week that has to be it.

I like this kid, we will win with him, he is very fast and he can hit the open man. Our future is tied to him. As soon as he stops fumbling we have a better than average( Bauserman) chance to win. And if the kid gets the basics down, then please let some football god sit on Fic's shoulder and share with him... what our offense has never shown with consistency is the ability to run a hurry up..it works,... at times in a game it will bring dividends..

Lets dig down this week and do a major gut check, find our manliness, we need to be pissed, mean, and fired up ... buffalo steaks are for dinner next week.. go Bucks..